Select Local Merchants

In 2011, Aarun?Carter won the National Oldtime Fiddlers Contest in Weiser, Idaho, and in 2012, her band, the Concrete Cowboys, was recognized as Oregon's best country band. At Red Barn Studios, she shares her gift for music with students by teaching violin, fiddle, guitar, and voice lessons. Students also can opt for online classes held over Skype, during which Carter chats live feedback.

Each of the guitar coaches at American Guitar Academy are certified in the school’s signature teaching method. Developed over 25 years, this house-honed instruction technique incorporates scientific research to help fingers learn to shred frets up to eight times faster than alternative methods. During private half-hour lessons, instructors guide budding rock stars aged 4 years and up through the basics of strumming chords and seamlessly stitching together riffs. These comprehensive lessons on classical, electric, or acoustic guitars are offered once a week with a live instructor or online and guarantee that students will be playing their favorite music within six months of training. Students may begin lessons without owning a guitar, but are encouraged to gain access to one quickly for mastering scales and the ability to solo with their teeth.

Owner Mike Urquhart takes his business's name to heart: the learning center draws on the talents of three generations of Urquharts, from his business-manager father all the way down to his grade-school-aged daughter Julia, who assists with piano lessons and administration. Signs bearing messages such as "No practicing: only play for fun" and "Mistakes are always welcome" embody the teachers' philosophy that no amount of technical skill can substitute for the sheer joy of playing, singing, and finally figuring out how to snap the fingers on both hands at once. The school's specialty group classes—some held in the new, 2,500-square-foot piano learning center—foster self-confidence with weekly performance opportunities, and the curriculum of songs can include anything from classical compositions to classical rock.

Forte Music School fosters up-and-coming musicians ages 5–adult with its experienced staff, technologically savvy facility, and modern take on musical instruction. In each 30-minute private lesson, neo-noisemakers conquer not only the pillars of traditional music education––including sight reading and music theory––but also their applications to the contemporary worlds of jazz, country, and autotuned college lectures. After mastering the basics of playing chords or improvisation at the hands of their supportive and motivating instructor, students also get to critique their own performances thanks to Forte's in-house recording equipment, which––much like a polygraph-tested Liza Minelli––provides a truthful and unbiased account of both positive and negative musical moments.

Blue Room Music Lessons teaches potential Neil Youngs and even smaller Lil' Waynes, ages 4 and older, how to be the best guitar player, bass player, violinist, singer, pianist, or composer they can be. Toe-tappin' tutelage unveils the star strummer within, enlisting the expertise of the academy's arsenal of teachers, comprised of skilled music producers, published songwriters, and experienced performers. Classes can focus on basics, including music fundamentals and avoiding hearing loss while smashing guitars, or work on original music composition.

Starfish Studios is a Community Music School and Recording Studio located in Southeast Portland. We offer private lessons on many different instruments and full album production for solo artists and band